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• Drum & Bass / Jungle
• Goa / Psy-Trance

Coroner - Grin - 25-Mar-08 02:39 PM
Coroners last full-length is a surprisingly considered and slower album that grooves far more than it thrashes, and since the band started by playing speedy, blazing metal its a little strange to hear them actually relax a little. Its a logical step from the past two albums, which found the band exploring and experimenting with their sound more and adding more room to their compositions.

But dont let that fool you, this is by far Coroners best album, and its just as heavy as anything theyve put out. Ron Royces snarly, Tom G. Warrior-style vocals are still ever present beside his more-than-competent bass grooves, while Tommy T. Baron snakes across ten tracks with amazing finesse, displaying some his best riffs and blistering solos. And of course, Marquis Marky is behind the skins once again, only this time hes got a little more room to breathe, and has the chance to add some subtlety to his playing.

The songs themselves are without a doubt some of the best the band have written in their criminally-short career, and many of the tracks could arguably fit within some of the best technical metal songs written. The band sound at ease on this record, like a weights been lifted off them and they finally have the space to just groove (see Serpent Moves), and theres a laidback feel to the playing (even if theyre still tight as hell). But this may just be on the surface, as theyre still angry, Ron growling about doing things "when I feel like doing it" on Internal Conflicts (which is also the song on the album that sounds most like their older output) and asking "why do I hate you?" on Still Thinking while Tommy busts out sleazy riffs on Serpent Moves and Still Thinking. And yet theres some calmer moments too, like the opening of Caveat and the hypnotising breakdown/end in Serpent Moves, and the band have even experimented with ambience in Dream Path and Theme For Silence. These little experiments would show up heavily later on The Unknown Unreleased Tracks, where the band fiddled with synthesizers and electronica, as well as their penchant for vocal samples.

And above all this, its an extremely listenable album, a thinking mans thrash album that you can both headbang to and appreciate for all its finer nuances that the band have only really shown when theyve slowed down and just grooved. It confused much of the bands fans when it was released, however, and like the band for much of their career, was ignored by all but hardcore devotees. A shame too, as its still a fantastic album with production and songwriting that holds up to this day. Truly ahead of its time.

Skynet + Stakka* - Pathogen / Molecular - 20-Feb-07 11:26 AM
An absolutely top notch release from Stakka and Skynet, featuring their trademark futuristic soundscapes, sweeping atmospheric effects and synths that conjure up images of Blade Runner, and great vocal samples that suit the smooth, rolling basslines perfectly.

The first side, Pathogen, is probably one of the finest techstep songs Ive ever had the pleasure of hearing and while Molecular is a little less epic, its definitely a very good track in its own right.

Technical Itch - Therapy Session Vol. 1 - 30-Jan-07 02:49 AM
Truly one of the darkest, most evil mixes youll ever hear in the dnb genre, executed stunningly by one of the most prolific darkstep producers ever, Technical Itch. A sonic journey thats never dull but does drag slightly near the end because of just how damn punishing the mix is overall. Thumping, distorted, sleazy basslines, layers of snares and kicks thatll rattle your bones, all tied together with some truly nasty samples and obligatory horror movie quotes. Limewax features rather heavily also, but with good reason - hes got some killer tracks that fit in perfectly with the sound of the mix and shows hes got a good future in production ahead of him. And theres also some nice ambient moments thanks to Danny Holdtights Motel and Tech Itchs Demon, which provide a rare breather for the listener, but its not long before were back being pummeled - and thats the way it should be.

Its a perfect example of how dark dnb should sound; dirty, dark, and hard, and with amazing drops and evil samples just where they should be. Highly recommended.

Various - Ultimate Drum And Bass Album - 16-Jan-07 06:06 AM
A fairly decent selection of tracks from the drum n bass back archives, however although the sticker on the front advertises that the album features all the biggest guns on the scene, there are some notable omissions - Dom & Roland, Origin Unknown, Goldie, Technical Itch and LTJ Bukem, to name a few. It cannot really be called an ultimate album, then. However, if youre judging the quality based on the actual tracks themselves, theres definitely some good club-centric wobbly bass stuff like Dillinja and Adam F, and quite a few very good classic tunes from back in the day like Deep Blues Helicopter Tune, Blames Music Takes you, Renegades Terrorist and Omni Trios Renegade Snares. Theres also a fair bit of the lighter side of the genre, like High Contrast, PFM and Hyper-On Experience, but as stated before no real representation of the darker side at all.

Buy it if you want some unmixed versions of the tracks here, but dont expect an ultimate collection by any means. Would be a good purchase for someone who is not well-versed in drum n bass or not into the harder, darker side of the genre.

Pantera - Reinventing The Steel - 23-Oct-06 11:20 PM
Although they dont reinvent much on this album, its still an album that any Pantera fan should like. However, much like The Great Southern Trendkill, its also pretty underrated. Its got the same killer riffs, squealing solos and neckbreaking grooves that all their previous records have, as well as some of Vinnie Pauls most complex drumming. It may drag a little towards the end, but its still one kickass album.

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